Jewish War Veterans - JWV

Day 6: Jewish War Veterans - JWV

Web Site: http://www.jwv.org/

JWV's Mission (from the JWV web site):

We, citizens of the United States of America, of the Jewish faith, who served in the Wars of the United States of America, in order that we may be of greater service to our country and to one another, associate ourselves together for the following purposes:

To maintain true allegiance to the United States of America; to foster and perpetuate true.

Americanism; to combat whatever tends to impair the efficiency and permanency of our free institutions; to uphold the fair name of the Jew and fight his or her battles wherever unjustly assailed; to encourage the doctrine of universal liberty, equal rights, and full justice to all men and women; to combat the powers of bigotry and darkness wherever originating and whatever their target; to preserve the spirit of comradeship by mutual helpfulness to comrades and their families; to cooperate with and support existing educational institutions and establish educational institutions, and to foster the education of ex-servicemen and ex-servicewomen, and our members in the ideals and principles of Americanism; to instill love of country and flag, and to promote sound minds and bodies in our members and our youth; to preserve the memories and records of patriotic service performed by the men and women of our faith; to honor their memory and shield from neglect the graves of our heroic dead.

Are meetings really that necessary?

We don't like to hold a lot of unnecessary meetings at our company.

We have always thought that most things we need to get done can be discussed informally and get done faster without a sit down, lengthy, flip chart filled meeting.

We find that our time is better spent actually working and solving the problems that are presented to us each day.

If we are ever stuck and need another perspective on anything, there is always someone to talk to and to throw an idea around with, we just prefer to not meet about anything, unless it is absolutely necessary.

I found this funny "ad" on Seth's blog on a post he calls "Let's skip the meeting" It's an "ad" that we can relate to and will surely make you grin.

Next time you have a meeting, you may want to ask yourself: Is this meeting is absolutely necessary?

Yoav

The OR Movement

Day 5: The OR Movement

Web site in English: http://eng.or1.org.il/Htmls/home.aspx

About The OR Movement (from the OR Movement web site):

The OR Movement’s mission is to populate and develop the Negev and the Galilee regions which represent 80% of Israel’s territory, yet currently house less than 20% of its population.

The OR Movement was formally founded in 2000, but the idea of building new communities and strengthening existing ones began several years before, when a group of four highly motivated teenagers from Petach Tikva dreamed of establishing their own community in the Negev.

After their army service in 1999 they moved to the Negev to build Sansana, the first new community to be established in the region since the beginning of the 80's.

To date, OR has established 5 new communities in the Negev (Sansana, Givot Bar, Be'er Milka, Merchav-Am and Charuv), and is in the process of establishing 4 more.

In the Galilee OR has already established one new community (Mitzpe Iron) and is in the process of establishing two more.

Over the next 5 years OR plans to relocate 26,750 families to the Negev, and 27,000 families to the Galilee.

In order to achieve these goals, a strategic plan was created focusing on 90 communities: 45 in the Negev, and 45 in the Galilee.

Both the Negev and Galilee strategic plans include Flagship projects with added values and leveraging abilities such as a new community for English-speaking new olim, a community for Army veterans, an ecological community and others.

OR, together with its partners in Israel and around the world is turning the dream of populating the Negev and Galilee into reality.

Masorti - The conservative movement in Israel

Day 4: Masorti

Web site: http://masorti.org/

About Masorti (from the Masorti web site):

MASORTI, meaning traditional, is the Hebrew name for the movement of Conservative Judaism in Israel.

The Masorti Movement, founded in 1979, is the umbrella organization of Masorti kehillot (congregations), which foster the practice of traditional Judaism among Israeli men and women while embracing modernity.

In promoting the combined values of Conservative Judaism, religious tolerance and Zionism, the Movement strives to nurture a healthy, pluralistic, spiritual and ethical foundation for Israeli society.Approximately 50,000 Israelis are members and affiliates of our kehillot and national programs, which engage some 125,000 Israelis each year. More than sixty percent of the Masorti community are native-born Israelis or come from lands in which English is not their native tongue.

The Masorti Movement in Israel comprises some 50 kehillot and havurot, the Religious Affairs Bureau, a kibbutz, a moshav, the NOAM youth movement, IDF Garinim (Masorti groups in the army), the Marom students and young adults organization, programs for children with special needs, regional and local educational learning centers for adults as well as pre-school programs.

We are currently developing programs in the fields of family education, and leadership and community development. This is in addition to our ongoing synagogue services, events and social activities.Legal advocacy is one of the central roles of the Movement, which represents the religious rights of Masorti and Conservative Judaism before the Israeli establishment, including government ministries, the Supreme Court and municipalities.

The Movement is deeply involved in the absorption of new olim - immigrants - from Latin America, as well as from countries of the Former Soviet Union. Masorti's inclusive and pluralistic approach is attractive to many olim, who might otherwise take little or no interest in Judaism.

A number of Masorti kehillot operate special programs for olim, as well as programming for the integration of olim run by NOAM and Marom.The Masorti Foundation for Conservative Judaism in Israel supports the work of the Masorti Movement, raising funds to enable the Movement to further its activities in Israel.

The Foundation also serves as the Movement's voice to American media, public officials and Jewish leadership.

The straight answer

Yesterday, while working with a client on an email marketing campaign I was part of the following conversation:

Client: Can you guarantee me that the email delivery system being used can omit my previous order?

Me: The list owners are in the middle of purchasing a new email delivery system and they can't guarantee that they will be able to omit previous orders.

The client wasn't 100% satisfied with my answer so he went to another broker and asked the same question:

Client: Can you guarantee me that the email delivery system being used can omit my previous order?

Other broker: Yes.

With two conflicting answers the client wound up calling the company delivering the emails to get the answer from the source.

Client: Can you guarantee me that the email delivery system being used can omit my previous order?

List owner: We are in the process of buying new software and they are not sure of it's capabilities so we can't make any guarantees.

After these two conversations I talked to the client again and you know what he said:

"I get the feeling that those other brokers (names removed to avoid embarrassment) are just in this to sell me a list and will say yes to anything I ask, even if it's not true. You know what, I would rather work with you because you guys actually have good customer service and care about what's best for me and my business"

At the end of the day, we got the sale, and that other broker lost out!

Lesson learned: Caring about what's right for the client, even it risks loosing one sale gives you more credibility and builds more trust than just saying yes to any client request just because that's what they want to hear.

Being a "yes man" or a "yes company" may work in the short term but eventually those companies will realize that people spending their hard earned money aren't stupid and they can smell BS a mile away.

Most businesses with integrity will look for a company to work with that will give them the straight answer... even if a sale is on the line.

Yoav

American Friends of Hebrew University (AFHU)

Day 3: American Friends of Hebrew University

Web site: http://www.afhu.org/

About American Friends of Hebrew University's (from the AFHU web site):

American Friends of The Hebrew University (AFHU) is a national, not-for-profit organization which provides programs, events, and fundraising activities in support of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel’s foremost center of higher education and research.

Forging a meaningful partnership between American Jewry and the people of Israel, AFHU helps to ensure the nation's well being by nurturing Israel’s greatest asset: the intellectual strength of its people.

AFHU cultural and educational programs attract people from all walks of life, including Hebrew University and Rothberg International School alumni, American scholars and scientists and the general U.S. public. Please visit our calendar. These initiatives promote greater understanding of the University’s contributions in fields ranging from technology, medicine and law to agriculture, public policy and Jewish Studies.Founded by the American philanthropist, Felix M. Warburg in 1925, AFHU has been a central force in The Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s rise to international prominence.

Today, AFHU is part of an international Society of Friends organizations spanning more than 25 countries.

Our Leadership:AFHU has an independent lay-led national board of directors consisting of dedicated professionals, civic and Jewish communal leaders from throughout the United States.

Branding 102

Dan Brown is happily welcomed as our guest writer today. Dan's posts on Jewish Philanthropy can be found on his informative blog http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/. Thanks Dan, we hope to see more of your posts on JewishDonorBlog.com soon!

"The American Red Cross spent $10. million to develop their web site; $2. million annually sustains it. While I do not know any organization in our communal world with an expenditure so large, I do suspect more than one are in the same ballpark as a percentage of their operating budgets.

So, the question is, you’ve put all this time, effort and money into the site. Beta-tested new ideas; possibly even held focus groups. And you’re still left with the nagging question, will they come?

You can easily fall into a bottomless pit spending money to market your website. But, there are also many (and important) ways you should be building your brand for free. What brings this up now?

During the past month or so we have seen a number of Conferences in our Jewish world. Many of our regular readers took time off for the Pesach Chag. As a result, on any given day our daily updates are sent, I receive a good number of automatic “out of office” replies. Looking at the email signatures is often a good way to tell the organizational affiliation and responsibility level of our subscribers.

The surprising fact? The name is there; occasionally a title; generally the phone number; and sometimes even the email address is printed below. But, uniformly what is missing? the organization’s web address.

That’s right. From the largest, and wealthiest, organizations in our Jewish world (including two powerful Foundations); from their media spokes-persons (unbelievable!) to the CEO’s, the email signature does not contain the web address. And every single one of these organizations has a pretty good web site.

In fact, a “shout-out” to Sharsheret; the ONLY “out-of-office” reply we received with a web-site tag-line!

We list for you six places you should always list your web address. After all, you’ve probably spent a fair amount of money designing not only your site but your ancillary marketing materials. What’s more, this is all free advertising!

letterheads

pledge cards

newsletters

business cards

all marketing materials

last but not least, your email signature."

Honest Reporting

Day 2: Honest Reporting

web site: http://www.honestreporting.com/

Honest Reporting's mission (from the Honest Reporting web site):

Israel is in the midst of a battle for public opinion – waged primarily via the media. To ensure Israel is represented fairly and accurately "'HonestReporting'" monitors the media, exposes cases of bias, promotes balance, and effects change through education and action.

When media bias occurs, our worldwide base of subscribers takes action by contacting news agencies, drawing issues of bias to their attention, and requesting changes. Media outlets, correspondents, and editors are now held accountable for biased reporting and are becoming more aware of the need for factual, impartial and fair reporting. Our subscribers also make use of our Communiqués to bolster their own knowledge and understanding of the often complex issues.

The work of HonestReporting yields results. Since 2000, the organization prompted hundreds of apologies, retractions, and revisions from news outlets. These efforts are changing the face of the media and reporting of Israel throughout the world.

As an organization dedicated to defending Israel against prejudice in the Media, we aim to provide educational tools and resources to anyone wishing to advocate for Israel. Our materials provide people with information that is helpful when responding to the Media, in their dealings on Campus or in the work place, and in any other sphere where having credible, considered background material is of value.

Why is the struggle for media fairness so important? The media sways public opinion, which directly affects foreign policy towards Israel and in turn the lives of her citizens. One person alone may not impact this struggle, but thousands united can!

ZOA - Zionist Organization of America

Over the next week, in Honor of Israel's 60th anniversary, we will be posting about Jewish organizations that fundraise and support Israel. Six organizations in Six Days (no post on Saturday).

Day 1: Zionist Organization of America (ZOA)

Web site: http://www.zoa.org/

What is ZOA (from the ZOA website) …

Since its founding in 1897, the Zionist Organization of America has been fighting for the Jewish people and the Land of Israel. Under the leadership of such illustrious presidents as Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, Rabbi Dr. Abba Hillel Silver, and current National President Morton A. Klein, the ZOA has been on the front lines of Jewish activism.

With a national membership of over 30,000, and chapters throughout the United States (including Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, North Jersey, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, South Jersey and Washington D.C.), the ZOA today works to strengthen US-Israeli relations, through educational activities, public affairs programs, working every day on Capitol Hill, and by combating anti-Israel bias in the media, textbooks, and on campuses.

Wherever our message is needed, our voice is being heard. The ZOA is the only organization that documents and exposes Palestinian Arab violations of the Road Map plan. The ZOA leads the efforts on behalf of American victims of Palestinian Arab terrorism. The ZOA's campaigns have repeatedly led to the defeat of hostile critics of Israel who were nominated for important government positions.

The ZOA has played a key role in Congress regarding victims of terrorism, keeping Jerusalem unified under Israeli sovereignty, fighting Hamas and Fatah, and working on the imposition of sanctions on Syria and Saudi Arabia.

The ZOA's growing Campus Activism Network organizes college students to combat Arab propaganda on campuses from coast to coast. The ZOA regularly brings student activists to Israel for leadership training programs; we are preparing the Jewish activist leadership of the future.

The ZOA's Center for Law & Justice works through the courts to help Israel and the Jewish people. The Center has filed suit against the State Department for ignoring the law requiring that "Jerusalem, Israel" be stamped on the passports of U.S. citizens who are born there. The Center also helped bring about the shutdown of ten pro-terrorist web sites. The ZOA initiated a groundbreaking case under federal civil rights laws to rectify the anti-Semitic/anti-Israel climate on campus.

The ZOA speaks out for Israel - in reports, newsletters, and other publications...in speeches in synagogues, churches, and community events, in high schools and colleges from coast to coast...in e-mail action alerts...in op-eds and letters to the editor...in radio and television appearances by ZOA leaders.

Always on the front lines of pro-Israel activism, ZOA has made its mark.

Happy Anniversary

We just may have a small image issue here.

Just look at the results of this recent poll done for the BBC (not exactly a source of pro-Israel material itself).

People think more highly of North Korea than they do of Israel.

Let’s put this in perspective.

North Korea: a Stalinist dictatorship that oppresses and starves its population. It has terrorized it neighbors with nuclear weapons and missile tests and has been caught promoting terrorist activity around the globe while selling its atomic technology to rogue states.

Israel: the only democracy in the Middle East, a loyal ally of the United States and The European Union. Despite fighting 6 wars and an ongoing onslaught of terrorist attacks, it boasts a vibrant economy, a vibrant free press and full participation of its minority populations in the political process.

Israel’s 60th anniversary is coming up on May 8th.

It’s time that we started doing a better job in making our case to the rest of the world.

David

Introducing our new blog logo!

Camels are desert dwellers, Negev Direct is located in heart of the Negev in Israel. Camels can be well dressed, so are we. Camels can't talk, but if they could they would be telling you to check out our informative posts on the JewishDonorBlog.com.

Thanks to Andrew Tibbetts in Chicago who designed our new blog logo. Great job Andrew. If any one wants to contact Andrew about doing logo or web design work, his portfolio can be seen at andrewtibbetts.com

Yoav

Broadcast Your Cause - YouTube Nonprofit Program

Untouched by man. Until you think it.

What’s remarkable about your product, or your organization, or for that matter, you?

If you don’t think that it’s worth the effort to find out, this story may change your mind.

In the March 31st issue of the New Yorker there is a long profile of Lynda Resnick, termed “The Pomegranate Princess” because of her stewardship of the POM Wonderful Company; the people who are turning pomegranate juice into a new health drink craze.

But that’s another story.

This story is about another company that Lynda and her husband own: Fiji Water.

It’s just bottled water. True it is from Fiji, but it’s still water in a bottle. Nothing special.

But Lynda was able to find something remarkable about Fiji Water that the previous owners didn’t think was even important.

Fiji Water comes from an underground aquifer on the Island of Viti Levu. And it goes straight from the aquifer to the bottle without any contact with the air, other water or additives.

Lynda thought that this was the remarkable quality of the product. Or in her own words, “That’s huge!”.

And it was.

Lynda’s team changed the label from an image of a waterfall (“surface water, yuck”) to a picture of tropical flower and palm fronds. The slogan was changed from the banal “Taste of Paradise” to the more provocative “Untouched by man. Until you drink it.”

Since the makeover sales have increased by 300%.

What’s remarkable about your product?

David

Direct Mail Spending Forcasted to Grow to 2011 and Beyond

I just read this article on about direct mail spending and I think it's worth sharing on the blog.

This article just serves to reassures me that although the economy has slowed down, direct mail spending is projected to grow. I am 100% convinced that direct mail marketing is a time tested marketing tool that when implemented correctly will produce results... regardless of the fact that their are other alternatives available.

Here's the article...

"Given the current state of the economy, marketers are naturally concerned about the impact a recession could have on their business. However, it is important to keep things in perspective and realize that while marketing spending may slow down, smart marketers will not abandon advertising completely. In fact, history has shown that companies that continued to advertise during tough economic times have experienced higher sales growth during the recovery period than those that halted their marketing efforts.

However, when funds are limited, marketing priorities shift and the focus turns to more cost-effective, targeted advertising methods with measure-able results -- such as direct mail. Numerous studies indicate that while overall ad spending generally falls during tough economic times, spending on direct mail actually increases. A White Paper from the Winterberry Group (Vertical Trends in Direct Mail 2008) projects figures that support this fact. The study notes that investment in direct mail marketing is expected to outpace spending growth for other media such as television, radio and print advertising for the 2007-2011 period. It is anticipated that direct mail spending will reach a compound annual growth rate of 5.5 percent, while spending for the "other media" listed above will grow by only 3.5 percent for the same period."

Hat tip to ASL E-News April 2008 edition

Yoav Kaufman

Thoughts on Urgency

As a direct marketer I get a lot of last minute “urgent" business requests especially around our busy seasons. I am always happy to help out any customer that needs my help regardless of the timing,

but here’s the thing…

Most of the stress and chaos that is caused by urgency is unnecessary and a big waste of time and energy. With a better communication of expectations and a little advanced planning, we could curb this "stressed out" working habit in no time.

Jason Freid is a great guy and someone I regard very highly in the business world. on the SvN blog Jason has this to say about the subject of urgency:

“One thing I’ve come to realize is that urgency is overrated. In fact, I've come to believe urgency is poisonous. Urgency may get things done a few days sooner, but what does it cost in morale? Few things burn morale like urgency. Urgency is acidic."

Jason also adds...

"If stress is a weed, urgency is the seed. Don’t plant it if you can help it."

Yoav Kaufman

Bad Phone Karma

As I write this, I am sitting on the phone waiting for my “next available personal service consultant” from a well-know website registration company to answer my call.

Luckily I have a Panasonic 4-line KX-TS4100b desktop phone console that tracks my call time. So far: 6 minutes 18 seconds and counting.

In the meantime, I am being entertained by a constant flow of bad elevator music interrupted by annoying announcements trying to sell me services I have no use for.

We’ve passed 8 minutes now and I’m starting to wonder whether this company is understaffed, overwhelmed or just doesn’t care about its customers. From my previous experiences with them, I’m guessing that the third option is the correct choice.

Another question occurs as we head towards, and pass, the 10 minute mark: why doesn’t this company (and many others) come up with a better customer service system?

11 minutes and I’m about to be transferred to a real, live person…..

And instead all I get is dead air. No one. Nothing.

There must be a better way to service customers, right? The technology is there. They know I called, they have my number.

If it was my company I would have a staff of people who immediately called back all dropped calls. “Mr. Rubin, what happened? Did we drop the call? I’m so sorry, how can I assist you?”

If that happened I would love this company forever. I would tell all of my friends about them and their great service. I would get them to switch their websites and blogs to this company.

Instead I’m going to try one of their competitors next time I need to register a domain name.

David

Matisyahu Jerusalem - Pesach Edition

As Pesach nears we remember that we were once freed from slavery in Egypt.

Let us however, not be complacent in our freedom, lest we forget that there are still many atrocities in this world that need the light from our collective soul to shine upon them.

Pesach Samayach.

Seth Godin: Sliced bread and other marketing delights

Priorities

Does your non-profit view fundraising as one of it's primary missions? If not, it could be time to change your priorities.

This just in from Jeff Brooks on the Donor Power Blog…

”How is it that fundraising is a bothersome distraction from the ‘real' work of so many nonprofits?

If these (non-profit) leaders paid attention, they’d see fundraising in a different way. They’d realize that what (fundraising) does for donors, for causes and for society are astounding.

(Non-profit leaders) might come to understand that fundraising is so great, so important, that it matters as much as their primary mission.”

Yoav Kaufman

"What's next in advertising and marketing?"

I just viewed a very informative slide show by Paul Isakson on the future of marketing and advertising.

I think that it's really a "must see" for those wanting to get a sneek peek at where the world of marketing is now and where it's headed in the future. Definitely worth 5 minutes of your time! Most of what is presented here is about marketing in relation to products like Nike shoes or Starbucks coffee, but I definitely think Jewish non-profits can take away some valuable information here about "emerging methods of marketing", providing "content" that people can't live without and the idea that Modern marketing = "making peoples lives better".

To view the slideshow click here.

Yoav Kaufman

Style Over Substance

I recently received what is possibly the worst email blast ever.

It was from an organization calling itself the Leadership Yeshiva Academy.

What you see is a headline: "A Unique Yeshiva in ISRAEL, Be a Jewish Leader"

Followed by this: "Find Out if You Are the Chosen One"

Then you can see this short video which is a really bad takeoff on The Matrix movies with some Men In Black thrown in.

It's supposed to be fun and interesting and get your attention.

But in the end, you never quite understand what the institution does.

Or even worse, what it wants you to do.

It could be a recruitment ad for future students. It could be a fundraising appeal.

Whoever made this spent about 99% of their time getting the style just right.

What happened to the message?

It got lost.

Don't make this mistake.

Please.

David Rubin

Putting the donor first: blogging edition

Has your non-profit taken the the next step and started posting to a blog?

If so, do you find yourself looking for readers and subscribers? The same fundraising principle that advocates putting the donor first can also be applied to blogging.

Blog about subjects that your potential readers/donors are interested in.

In the words of David from JournalMarketing,

"Promote yourself by shutting up" ... not literaly of course but this means less self promotion and more talk about topics your donors will find interesting.

This may mean not writing about your organizations latest project or donation drive, but it could mean writing about a current event that your donors are most likely following closely.

Don't know what holds your readers attention? Now is a good time to find out! Start posting and see what posts get the most clicks by using a blog statistic tracking program such as the free service offered by Feeedburner.com

Thanks to Donor Power Blog for the inspiration

Yoav Kaufman

Spring Forward*

*As of Friday morning we turn our clocks ahead one hour (but only if you live in Israel). Israel is now 7 hours ahead of New York and 10 hours ahead of Seattle. Spring is back, and not one minute too soon!

Yoav Kaufman

Getting Personal

In a recent blog post entitled "Secret shortcut: personal vs. impersonal" Seth Godin says:

"Form letters don't work. Autographs do. Surly cashiers fail. Smiles from real people succeed. Humans like humans. They hate organizations. Do you know what most people want? They want you to care."

Three things to think about:

- When you receive a donation or one of your volunteers puts in hours of his or her valuable time to help you out, do you follow up with a personal phone call or letter showing your appreciation?

- Have you ever offered to meet with your donor base in a one to one setting to get their reactions and suggestions to some of your latest projects?

- Do you strive to make everyone who supports you feel appreciated on an individual level?

Yoav Kaufman

Blog Comments are Now Enabled!

Have you ever read a blog entry on the Jewish Donor Blog that you had some more information about or a link to add? Now you can!

Comments are now enabled on JewishDonorBlog.com and we are interested in what you have to say!

To comment on one of our blog posts just click on the title of the post within the blog and then just click "post a comment".

Yoav Kaufman